1. Field of Endeavor
The present invention relates to chemical amplification and more particularly to chemical amplification based on fluid partitioning.
2. State of Technology
U.S. Pat. No. 4,683,202 issued Jul. 28, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 4,683,195 issued Jul. 28, 1987; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,159 issued Jan. 24, 1989 to Kary B. Mullis et al provide background information. The patents describe processes for producing any particular nucleic acid sequence from a given sequence of DNA or RNA in amounts which are large compared to the amount initially present. The DNA or RNA may be single-or-double-stranded, and may be a relatively pure species or a component of a mixture of nucleic acids. The process utilizes a repetitive reaction to accomplish the amplification of the desired nucleic acid sequence. The extension product of one primer when hybridized to the other becomes a template for the production of the desired specific nucleic acid sequence, and vice versa, and the process is repeated as often as is necessary to produce the desired amount of the sequence.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,503,715 for a nucleic acid ligand diagnostic biochip issued Jan. 7, 2003 provides the following background information, “Methods are provided in the instant invention for obtaining diagnostic and prognostic Nucleic acid ligands, attaching said ligands to a Biochip, and detecting binding of target molecules in a Bodily to said Biochip-bound Nucleic acid ligands.” In one embodiment of the instant invention, one or more Nucleic acid ligands are chosen that bind to molecules known to be diagnostic or prognostic of a disease; these ligands are then attached to the Biochip. Particular methods for attaching the Nucleic acid ligands to the Biochip are described below in the section entitled “Fabrication of the Nucleic Acid Biochip.” The Biochip may comprise either (i) Nucleic acid ligands selected against a single target molecule; or more preferably, (ii) Nucleic acid ligands selected against multiple target molecules.
U.S. Patent Application No. 2002/0197623 for nucleic acid detection assays published Dec. 26, 2002 provides the following background information, “means for the detection and characterization of nucleic acid sequences, as well as variations in nucleic acid sequences ... methods for forming a nucleic acid cleavage structure on a target sequence and cleaving the nucleic acid cleavage structure in a site-specific manner. The structure-specific nuclease activity of a variety of enzymes is used to cleave the target-dependent cleavage structure, thereby indicating the presence of specific nucleic acid sequences or specific variations thereof.”